Warhammer is a name that evokes many emotions and ideas into many people. From fans of the classic tabletop franchise to the extensive lore from Black Library, to the countless popular video game adaptations. Warhammer is massive, but how did a tiny company from Nottingham, England become one of the most recognisable brands in nerd culture?
It all started in 1983 with Warhammer Fantasy Battle. Set in a medieval-style world, partly inspired by what Tolkien had created with Lord of the Rings, and a bit of DnD. Which in itself owed a lot to Tolkien’s work. It had it all: Orcs, Elves, Dwarfs, Humans, Lizard people, Trolls, and everything in between. I was first introduced to Warhammer through video games in the ’00s when a friend and I would travel a few towns over to the Games Workshop store (now all called Warhammer stores) and just look at the models, and watch people play. Weirdly, I have very few memories of ever actually buying any models, I certainly don’t have any of them any more, sadly. But my introduction was much later, in fact it was in the 40k period that I was first introduced.
A few years later, Games Workshop went futuristic with Warhammer 40,000 (40K), and the rest was truly history. Imagine a satirical, black comedy from a bunch of people in Britain, with the “Are we the bodies” meme, expect everyone is. Then fill that World with towering Space Marines, mystical Eldar (Aeldari), Orks, Samuri-inspired robot fish people? If you’ve ever encountered the term “Grimdark”, then you know what Warhammer 40k is all about. It is perhaps best summed up with the series’ iconic quote: “In the grim darkness of the far future there is only war.”
Warhammer Age of Sigmar has now taken the fantasy setting to new heights, as it succeeds the Fantasy game before it. Though, you can still play Fantasy in the new Old World setting.
Today, Warhammer has grown way beyond the tabletop—there are novels (Black Library), video games, and even animated series. Personally, the magic comes from being part of a World that grows all the time. While I don’t play Warhammer much, I do play the video games, paint the minis, and read novels. The Worlds of Warhammer are ever expanding, and it’s one of the most recognisable franchises in the World of nerds.
The Origins of Warhammer: From Tabletop Miniatures to a Cultural Phenomenon
Now that Warhammer is a World-wide phenomenon, it’s hard to imagine the origins of the franchise. The first store opened in 1978, in Hammersmith, London. While the company now is closely associated with the town of Nottingham, it started in London. Pictured below, that first store produced Citadel metal miniatures which were used for other miniature role-playing games such as DnD. GW and DnD had a close partnership, in fact, not long after the two companies almost merged. TSR, INC which owned DnD at the time were due to merge with Games Workshop before Steve Jackson and Sir Ian Livingstone pulled out.
One of the first major moves Games Workshop did was to secure the UK printing rights for the RPG games Call of Cthulhu, Runequest, Traveller and Middle-earth Role-Playing. The came after the company had already been doing the same for DnD years prior. This move helped secure GW as a major player in the UK, cutting out expensive import costs for UK residents.
Eventually, in 1983, Games Workshop released Warhammer Fantasy Battles. The company’s very own miniature game. The game quickly gained popularity among young people who wanted to explore the lore, figures, and competitive gameplay. See, while DnD left a lot up to the player, Warhammer was much more focused. You had clear factions, rules, and ways to engage. These battles would sometimes include 100s of miniatures across a huge table, making it a spectacle to behold for anyone standing around. This was a major part of the early success of physical Warhammer locations, and why to this day that model works for the company.
Everything changed in 1987, however, when Games Workshop moved from the Fantasy setting to the far future with Warhammer 40k. While the company had blips since, in fact, the company’s Lord of the Rings offering at the height of the movie popularity might be why the company is still here today. It’s hard to look beyond 40k as a key changing point in the history of Warhammer. The 40th anniversary of 40k is rapidly approaching, and it’s amazing to see such a niche hobby still around to this day and enjoyed by new generations of players.
Warhammer Goes Digital: The Evolution of Warhammer Video Games
There have been a lot of Warhammer video games. Going back to the 1980s on the ZX Spectrum, but it’s the past decade where Warhammer, and specifically 40k has started to find its feet. There has been a number of games that stand out, for me, the game that really grabbed me was Dawn of War. It was the first time the Warhammer tabletop had translated over to the video game space in a way that felt right. Dawn of War took the Real-Time-Strategy gameplay of titles such as Red Alert or C&C, and added a Warhammer spin to it. The game would spawn two sequels, though the 3rd would be the last in the series.
Warhammer has tried its hand at almost every discipline of video games, but it’s when the game stays true to the tabletop that the new work best. Space Marine, and now Space Marine 2 have often been talked about as one of the games that “got” Warhammer 40k. Interestingly, Space Marine is very heavily inspired by the gameplay of the Gears of War series, with the Gears of War characters themselves typically described as being based on the titular Space Marines. For Fantasy players, the Total War: Warhammer series was the game-changer, ironically the games was released right when Fantasy Battles entered their “end times” event, ending the game and replacing it with Age of Sigmar. Since then, the series has had two more sequels, and despite some blips remains as popular as ever. Though still based on the Fantasy game setting, and not Age of Sigmar.
Warhammer Going Forward
Warhammer isn’t showing any signs of slowing down, while the hobby had a huge peak during COVID-19, it has continued to do well. 2024 saw a new edition of Age of Sigmar, Kill Team, and Underworlds. Next year is likely to be a little slower with Horus Heresy and maybe Warcry alongside the Lord of the Rings Fantasy Battle.
2026 will be the big year for Games Workshop, with a new edition of Warhammer 40k likely to be dropping.